Open carry vs. concealed carry poll.

Do you feel open carry is safe?

  • Yes, open carry is safe, and a great deterrent!

    Votes: 143 61.6%

  • No, it encourages gun snatching attempts, and you lose the element of suprise!

    Votes: 89 38.4%
  • Total voters
    232
  • Poll closed .
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R

RKBABob

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Many say that open carry is dangerous because it may encourage gun snatching attempts... others say it provides a deterrent that concealed carry does not.

Target or deterrent? What say you? Anyone feel that statements against open carry are similar to antis who say "A woman with a gun will just have it taken away from her?" Is the "element of suprise" really a relevant arguement? LEOs, do you feel safer when its conealed, off duty, or when your sidearm is in plain sight?

MODS: I searched the forum, and I could NOT find a poll on this subject...
Feel free to lock it, if its already been done!
 
So if a LEO carries open then he or she is "encourageing a gun snatching "????

Does a gun in plain site deter a BG? Doesn't it depend on the bad guy??

jj
 
Don't know if we "need" another thread but anything else close to real debate or freedom of speech gets locked by the heavy handed mods we now have.
 
Probably not, Bruce... I really did search for a similar poll before I posted this one, though! Oh well, mine is a little different, anyhow. Besides, a few people here actually enjoy beating a dead horse! (and the mods are here to shut it all down if it becomes the next .45 vs. 9mm war!)
 
JustJim wrote:
Does a gun in plain site deter a BG?
Click to expand...
Favorable opinions of open carry could be based on the fact that 90% + of defensive gun uses are resolved by the defender merely presenting the firearm... no shots fired. In an ideal situation, even presenting it is made un-necessary by open carry. But, and thats a big but, criminals can plainly see the gun, and plan around it... ie: no element of suprise.
 
Open Carry was never an issue until the antis started to teach people that all guns are bad. Even now, when I open carry in MT or UT no one cares except the occasional anti.

think of it. If you have a sidearm readily available, and a BG shows up, you have a much better chance of getting said sidearm in action. If you have to remove clothing or reach into your hidden CC purse or whatever, thats extra time you may not have.

As for gun snatching, I would really like to see some evidence that this has happened in the real world. I see it alot in movies, but I haven't heard of a real-life case where this happened.

I think there's a reason why all armed forces, including LEO, MIL, etc open carry.

I think the reason common people are opposed to open carry is because they have been subtely brainwashed into believing that guns shouldn't be "exposed" to the commoners...

I also think that 99% of would be robbers would look for an easier target, than take on someone who has a gun in plain site.
 
Shouldn't the fact that you carry be enough? How you choose to carry should be irrelevent and personal with your own reasons as to why.
 
Why give the BG the option of a plan?? Concealed means he has to worry and that makes him unsteady.

jj
 
Majic - agreed. People should have the choice about the how and why.

Just Jim - IMO, concealed means that you are easy prey. (The BG doesn't know you have a gun as 90% of people don't have guns). If they see you have a gun, they are cowards and will look for someone who doesn't have a way to fight back. Just my opinion.
 
If you were the bad guy all you would have to do is get behind the good guy because you know he has a gun. CC means he doesn't know who is carrying and won't be able to cover more than one person at a time.

While I agree that it should be the users choice I still won't carry a gun where anyone can see it. I just practice a conceald draw, alot.

jj

When I winter carry I wear a Carhart sweatshirt with a front pocket that is open to both hands. I have my hand on my gun at all times when a stranger is at hand. I can shoot through my shirt or pull out my 442 without a snag for a longer shot.

In the summer that same gun goes in a galco in the pocket holster that fits my baggie pants. I can have my hand on my gun at all times should I feel the need.
 
IMHO 95%+ of Bad Guys will see an openly carried firearm and look for easier prey. Whatever percentage remains will either be too stupid to make a sneaky plan (the type that will charge someone with a gun already drawn on them), or will most likely fail in some ambush attempt because you don't put yourself in situations where you can be ambushed and practice good situational awareness.
 
but I haven't heard of a real-life case where this happened.
Click to expand...

I can vouch for one.

I knew a PO that lived 3 houses down from me. He didn't want to go into detail about what happened, but basically he was in a men's restroom while on duty and a guy tried to wrestle his gun off his holster. Ended up shooting the BG.

As for the poll, hey...if you have a REALLY retentive holster and people don't freak out too much, why not. Sure makes it a lot easier to draw and more comfortable anyway.

Here out in the sticks of VA, people are used to hunting. When I tried OC my Sig, a few people made negative comments and one actually confronted me. Seems they feel handguns are for shooting people (vs deer) and they don't like that concept. Case in point, I OC'ed at a local restaraunt for the first time in over a year the other day. Waitress came over, immediately noticed my Sig. From then on, she didn't ONCE smile and was quite muted with her usual questions.

Now with the mall/church/school shootings, it just reinforces that fear and makes permit holders out to be the BG.

I voted 'no' for a different reason than the two given, mainly because of what I've encountered in this area.
 
They cried blood in the streets & parking lots when legal CC came to Texas. It did not happen.
They cry gun grabbing ove the OC issue & it does not happen in the PC states it would not happen here.
 
I think there's a reason why all armed forces, including LEO, MIL, etc open carry.
Click to expand...


Do you think it's maybe because their line of work is a tiny bit different than Joe Schmoe with a CCW permit?
I know a bunch of people on here carry an astronomical amount of stuff around with them but not too many have admitted to tooling around town wearing a Kelvar helmet and full body armor :D
 
I think there's a reason why all armed forces, including LEO, MIL, etc open carry.

Do you think it's maybe because their line of work is a tiny bit different than Joe Schmoe with a CCW permit?
Click to expand...

Yes and NO. I think LEO and MIL have been changed in the public's eye to serve a higher purpose, thus they are allowed all the good guns, OC, etc. At the same time, I feel it is every american citizens duty to defend our country and to defend themselves.

LEOs can not protect us. The Military is there to protect in a major war, or to serve in wars overseas. Neither of these groups are personal bodyguards to the general populace. I truly believe that if more of the populace would open carry and stand up to BGs, crime rates would drop significantly.

Does anyone know when open carry started diminishing? In the old days, pretty much everyone who lived west of the mississippi open carried (1800s). When did the general public have a change of heart?
 
I really believe most opposition to OC is based on what people perceive to be a violation of social etiquette, and most of the yammering about "the element of surprise" and "tactical advantage" is really just subconscious rationalization.

If you look at nature, how many creatures that are endowed with powerful defensive mechanisms try to hide their abilities? Most of them do everything they can to communicate clearly that they are unsafe prey, via bright colors and similar displays.

Poison_Dart_frog_wmark.jpg image?id=93516&rendTypeId=4.jpg

How about defensive armament at a national level? Anyone who's watched Dr. Stranglove (or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb) knows how dumb it is to keep your doomsday device a secret.:neener:

History and Nature show that it's a better bet to avoid confrontation by clearly announcing your strength, than to appear weak and trust your hidden advantage to carry you through.
 
I think the Dr. Strangelove reference is extremely apt.

Very few thieves will opportunistically attack a hard target. It's so much easier to find an easier mark. That's why if you have an alarm in your house, even thought it may be easy to defeat, the chance of being burglarized go down noticeably.

Open carry is no more "attractive" than the alarm company signs you put in front of your house if you have an alarm. Both indicate that you think you have something to lose... but they also indicate an attempt to protect whatever it is.
 
Target or deterrent? What say you?
Click to expand...
Both......If I were a bg hell bent on robbing a bank and didnt mind taking folks out to get the job done you can bet I am going to target armed folks first. By default if I see an OC they go first. just one situation.

On the other side of things If I were a punk kid looking for the grab and dash wallet I sure would not go for the person with a gun.


do you feel safer when its conealed, off duty, or when your sidearm is in plain sight?
Click to expand...
This is not relivent I feel safe with or with out my gun concealed or not. I do not need a firearm to feel safe like a child does with a tedybear.
 
If you want to open carry and do. Can't you also conceal carry also. Why does it have to be either/or. Do you think police only open carry in uniform? I would carry more open carry if it was socially more accepted. At times I have carried open just because it was expedient for me.

One in view / one in the pocket or hidden. " Have it your way"
 
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